About GAHEA - History
2001 – 2003: The Early Years
- Founded in 2001 by 7 schools that shared the vision of post secondary education options for the local Atlanta business community. The founding members included: University of Phoenix, Southern Polytechnic State University, Georgia Perimeter College, DeVry University, American InterContinental University, Shorter College, and Clayton State University.
- A mission statement was developed, along with a web site and brochure.
- Monthly meetings were held and everyone pitched in to start booking education fairs.
- Initial By-Laws were adopted and an invitation was extended other regionally-accredited institutions to join to acquire a balance representation of Regents, Private, and Proprietary institutions.
- Officers were elected.
- Southern Polytechnic State University CIS Department submitted to update, and host the web site. From this, the interactive website was launched. In addition a Logo contest was sponsored and graphic design students from the various member institutions participated. The winning design was submitted from students from Southern Polytechnic State University and they won a pizza party
2004 – 2007: Organizational Improvements
- By-laws were amended to reflect member accountabilities
- The Virtual Ed Fair was launched with key words and degree options from each school. This would greatly improved service offerings for corporate and community contacts
- The Executive Committee launched a 5-phase plan in 2007 that included on-site education fair booking, business-to-business marketing, and leveraging the Virtual Ed Fair. Mass mailings were done to promote the VEF
- By-Laws were updated to address governance needs
- Marketing sub-committee was formed
2008 – 2012: Continued Growth and Progress
- In 2008, a membership committee was formed. A membership drive was organized which included mailings, phone calls and a luncheon which resulted in 3 new members
- The organization experienced much growth thereafter with 22 members by 2009
- 2010 the website was redesigned and launched with new features to support GAHEA’s growth
- At the membership meeting in December 2010 a new logo was presented and voted on. The new logo was approved in 2011
- In 2012 membership reached its largest number yet at 26 members
